32. Dimitri
32
DIMITRI
“ T he world looks so pretty from up here,” Briar muses, looking at the turquoise waters and the shimmering coral reefs below us.
We're flying at a low altitude, so she can see all the way down to the ocean bed.
"I should take you scuba diving sometime." I glance over at her.
Her eyes sparkle. "I would like that."
“I still haven’t told you where we’re headed,” I say.
“Honestly, I don't care where we're going as long as I get to spend time with you," she says. Her eyes hold mine. “I really like you, Dimitri."
In this moment, she’s looking at me the way she used to. There’s nothing but complete trust in those eyes.
When all of this is over, I hope she still has it in her to look at me the same way again.
"Paris," I say, clearing my throat. "We're going to Paris."
"That sounds dreamy," she says. "I've really been craving pastries lately. I don't know why, but I’m hungry all the time."
I swallow. It's because she's eating for two.
But I can't tell her that.
"You can eat all the pastries you want when we get there."
“And I plan to.” She grins.
She glances down as we pass over another green island.
“There are so many islands here.” She peers down at the forested land below. We can see the birds and the tops of the trees.
"Each of the islands here has a rich history," I tell her, pointing at the cluster of islands on my screen. I point toward one that's shaped like a horseshoe. "This one, in particular, has an interesting past."
“Oh?”
"Back in the day, it served as a haven," I say. "Back when pirates used to own the high seas, this island was one of their most beloved hideouts."
"Do you think they buried any treasure there?" Briar tilts her head at the horseshoe island. We won't be crossing over it, but it's not far from where we are right now.
"Even if they did, nobody wants it,” I say.
"Why wouldn't anybody want treasure?" she asks.
"Archaeologists and historians have tried to go to the island," I say. "None of them returned. It's like the Bermuda Triangle of the Mediterranean Sea."
As soon as the words leave my mouth, I realize I just told her our general location. But she doesn’t seem to notice. Or if she does, she doesn’t seem to care.
And to be honest, neither do I.
"What happened to the people who went there?” she asks.
"Their bodies were found washed up on the shore weeks later," I say. "Autopsies were done, but nobody could figure out their cause of death."
"That sounds tragic," she says.
"People have learned to stay away from it," I say. "They say that the island is cursed. And that includes the gold that people claim is still buried there.”
"It sounds like something from a movie."
"Real life is even stranger than fiction sometimes."
She huffs. "Tell me about it."
Briar looks somber for a moment.
"Penny for your thoughts, baby girl."
She smiles at me. "It's not what you think. I think something strange is happening to me. I'm starting to make peace with it all. With my past, I mean."
"How so?" I ask.
"It used to always be on my mind," she says. "But lately, not so much. I feel like I took all of that baggage and set it aside. I no longer feel so heavy."
I know from experience that it's not how things work. When you go through something traumatic, the only way to get through it is to go through it. All of the ugly emotions need to be dug up and examined and felt before being cast aside.
But I don't tell her that.
When the time comes for her to feel everything, I'll hold her in my arms. I'll make sure she knows that she's loved and protected from it all.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to bum you out," she says.
"Never apologize for speaking your mind," I say. "I want to hear your every thought."
She blushes then. Splotches of color appear on her cheeks, making me grin. She places her hands over her cheeks and looks away.
"Look at that,” Briar says, pointing at something in the distance.
I follow her extended finger.Every muscle in my body locks up when I see what she's pointing at. It's a glorious sunny day, but there are dark clouds on the horizon. And we're moving right toward them.
The storm.
" Blyat ," I curse in Russian.
Oleg tried to warn me about it. He's my numbers guy. Statistics and probability are his thing. I should have listened to him.
I try to maneuver away from the dark clouds, but I know there's no escaping a storm like this. The best I can do is try to survive it.
“Dimitri, please tell me those are just ominous-looking clouds,” Briar says.
“If only,” I say.
"Is that the storm Oleg tried to warn us about?" She tries to sound strong, but I hear the tremble in her voice.
"Yes, I'm afraid it is." I try to radio for assistance.
"What are we going to do?"
"I'll try to land on one of the islands before the storm hits.”
I glance back at the dashboard. There's a cluster of islands for me to choose from. If I can make it to one of these islands in time, we can seek shelter there until the storm passes.
Normally, I'm clear-headed in these types of situations.
But with Briar sitting next to me, I'm acutely aware that everything is at stake right now. My woman and my unborn child are counting on me. She trusts me, and I cannot let her down.
As I begin the descent, the wind picks up in speed.
It gets harder for me to steer the aircraft. Even as I try to get away from the clouds, they seem to be moving closer to me.
When the torrential rain hits us, it feels like a spike to my chest.
"This might get more turbulent," I tell Briar. "I need you to hold on."
"Okay." Briar watches me with wide eyes. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"I just need you to stay strong, baby." The words feel like taffy in my throat. I can't believe I put her in this position in the first place. I should never have put her life in danger like this.
The helicopter lurches and spins as the turbulence intensifies. The storm is too strong. It's more than I can handle.
Seconds later, my biggest fear comes true—the engine gives out on me.
I try to control the steering, but it feels like a losing battle.
We free-fall.
"Dimitri?" Briar asks.
I can't even bring myself to look her in the eye. All of this is my fault. I have no words of reassurance for her, so I just take her hand.
"Dimitri, why aren't you doing anything?"
We're at the mercy of the storm now. The wind throws us around, taking us toward the heart of the chaos. I've been in storms before. I know that if we move any closer toward the eye of the cyclone, the helicopter will come apart piece by piece.
We won't survive it.
"I'm sorry for letting you down, princess," I say, glancing away from her. We’re surrounded by dense gray clouds on all sides. "If there's a life after this one, I'll find my way to you. I'll be a better man for you then. I'll be the man you always deserved."
"Dimitri, look at me." She's squeezing my hand back. Her voice is low but calm.
When I don’t lift my head, she tugs on my hand.
“I know that the time we spent together was short,” she says. “But in these past few days with you, I feel like I lived more than I did in all the years of my life put together. And even though I don’t remember our relationship before my coma, I’m so glad you were a part of my life."
I look at her now.
"There's so much more for you out there," I say. "So much more for you to see and experience. Your life has barely begun, Briar."
"I'm content," she says. "If this is how it ends, I'm glad I have you by my side."
A deafening roar comes from the engine, but neither of us looks away from each other. I'm choked up with regret and sorrow. I just found her. I can't believe fate would be so cruel as to rip us apart so soon.
As we hurtle toward the ocean, I’m seized by a fit of rage.
All my life, I had to watch as everything I loved was taken from me—my sisters, my brother, my pride. I'm not going to let this be the end.
Keeping my eyes on Briar, I open the pilot door. I hold my arms out toward her.
"Do you trust me?"
"You can't be serious," she whispers, glancing at the open door.
"Do you trust me?"I repeat.
"I can't swim," she says.
"I know," I say. "I'll carry you."
She looks scared out of her mind, but she nods.
“I trust you,” she says, unbuckling her seat belt and reaching for me. I take her into my arms, and she curls up against my chest.
I grab the emergency backpack from the cargo compartment and sling it over my shoulder.
I don’t let myself see how far above the ocean we are. I make a leap for it.
The moment we exit the helicopter, it blows up in a cloud of fire. Briar gasps as she stares at the explosion.
We're falling again, and nothing will break our fall this time.
I hold my girl close to my chest, making sure she doesn't feel any of the impact as we hit the ocean surface.
We're plunged deep into the dark abyss.
I keep my eyes open.
If I thought the storm above was chaotic, it's nothing compared to the state of the ocean. All I see are churning, frothy waves.
Everything is in violent motion.
The fall sends shock waves rippling through my body, but I try not to focus on that. I can cater to any injuries later. My only goal now is to get to land.
I turn in a slow circle underwater, trying to find any signs of land.
That’s when I see it—a portion of the ocean that looks darker than the rest.
Land.
I swim in that direction, taking us closer and closer toward the ocean surface so we can breathe again. Briar's eyes are tightly screwed shut. She clutches me like I'm her lifeline.
When I break through the surface, rain and hail pelt my skin. Lightning flashes overhead. It's the middle of the day, but it feels like nighttime.
"Princess, breathe," I say, cupping Briar's cheek. She opens her eyes. She glances around at the endless ocean and starts panicking.
She starts to hyperventilate.
I hold her chin and force her to look at me until her breathing evens out.
I’ve lost so much in my life. I lost nearly everything I cared about. I’ll be damned if I lose this girl too. She’s mine .
She places her hand over mine, clutching me tightly. She looks at something behind me, and her eyes widen. She points at it.
It feels like déjà vu.
As I turn, a giant swell of a wave picks us up. It grows and gains speed at the same time, taking us higher and higher.
And when it takes us under, we're thrown even deeper inside the ocean.
I kick to reach the surface.
But no matter how much I kick, there's still more water above me. The pressure of the water is heavy above me. I promised myself I wouldn’t give up, but my body has limitations.
It starts to slow.
Briar's body is limp in my arms. I hold her tighter against me as I try to reach the surface.
I'm moving, but it feels like I'm not going anywhere.
I close my eyes.
Everything goes black.